1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to coin sorting devices and, more particularly, to coin sorters of the type which use a resilient rotating disc and a stationary sorting head for sorting coins of mixed denominations. The coin sorter of this invention is particularly related to coin sorting devices for coin sets in which there is only a small variation in diameters among the coin denominations.
2. Background Information
Although disc-type coin sorters with resilient discs have been used for a number of years, problems are still encountered in applying this technology to certain types of coin sets. Sorting heads for coin mixtures which include two coin denominations of substantially similar diameters may encounter difficulty in discriminating between coins of the different denominations. Because all coins to be sorted are usually aligned with their outboard edges at a common radial position and different denominations are discriminated by the distance of their inboard edges from that common radial position, coins of similar size must be precisely aligned at the common radial position in order to enter the appropriate exit channel. For example, a coin that moves just slightly beyond the common radial position may enter an exit channel intended for a smaller diameter coin. Rather than passing on to the appropriate exit channel, the larger denomination coin is issued from the exit channel intended for the smaller coin denomination. This is a coin missort.